The Presidency has said there has been no change in the position of Senator George Akume as Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

“There has been no change in the status of His Excellency, Senator George Akume, as Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement made available to journalists.

The statement is titled ‘Akume Remains SGF.’

This followed multiple reports which quoted Presidency sources saying Tinubu had named his Special Adviser on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman, to serve as the new SGF.

Onanuga said, “President Bola Tinubu, currently in Saint Lucia, has not made any new appointments.

“The information circulating about Akume’s replacement is untrue. Agents of mischief fabricated it.

“The Presidency advises Nigerians to disregard the fake news.”

By Henry Ukazu

Dear Destiny Friends,

It is everybody’s desire to be successful in whatever field of endeavour he finds himself. It can be in career, family life, business endeavors or personal development. But there’s absolutely nothing good that comes easy. Everything in life involves a lot of hard work, smart work, dedication, discipline, network, sacrifice, prayers, and determination among a whole lot if one is intentional to succeed.

Of a truth, success is not for the faint-hearted. In all honesty, everyone wants to be ahead of everyone, especially contemporaries and funnily enough, the average human being sometimes have a bit of ill- feeling when competitors arise or seem to outsmart them either with better quality or price. The good thing about this however, is that it makes one sit up.

Now, this brings us to the essence of today’s article. For anyone to be ahead of their competitors, they must fly like the eagle. Eagles are known for their powerful build, sharp vision, and fearless nature. They are highflyers, capable of soaring to great heights, and gliding for extended periods. Eagles are also known for their tenacity, using storms to their advantage to gain altitude. Other notable characteristics include their strong talons and beaks, used for hunting, and their protective nature towards their young.  These are some of the qualities that make it unique.

The eagle is not regarded as the king of the sky for fun, no. The eagle flies so high because that’s where it gets a chunk of its strength. This ability enables the eagle to take its prey and predators alike to it’s abode where it will have enough emotional and physical strength to dismantle them.

I will be sharing characteristics of an eagle to enable us know why we ought to be like the eagle if we want to soar.

VISION

The eagle has a sharp vision. Their vision is so precise. They can see farther than any animal.  They possess exceptional eyesight, allowing them to spot prey from great distances. As human beings, we must have eagle eyes to know what we really want, and what we don’t want. Vision allows us to go for what we desire and deserve. When we have vision, we won’t wait for anyone to tell us when to strike. We flow through the wind despite the waves and heavy current and associated challenges. When our vision is precise, it will give people clarity to understand how they can assist us.

Let’s take a closer look at great leaders of this world who have come and gone. There are many great leaders that came and went but one characteristic that is common in all is “Vision”.

Vision is a successful leadership characteristic

You must have a vision that guides and leads your team towards the organizations or societal goals. The vision must be big and focused. A big, focused vision will produce big results

FLIGHT

Eagles are known for their ability to soar and glide, using their large wings to their advantage. Eagles can fly up to an altitude of 10,000 feet, but they are able to swiftly land on the ground. At 10, 000 feet, you will never find another bird. If you find another bird, it must be an eagle.

An eagle doesn’t mingle around with the pigeons. It was Dr. Myles Munroe who said that. Pigeons scavenge on the ground and grumble and complain all day long. Eagles are not. They fly and make less noise waiting for opportunities to strike their next prey or glide with the current of the storm.
Great leaders are problem solvers. They don’t complain like the pigeons do. They love to take challenges as the eagle does when the storm comes.  As human beings, we all have our strengths and weaknesses.

It’s always good for one to take any fight to their home ground where it will give them advantage over their predators. For instance, a fish is stronger in water, but weak on land, a lion is stronger on land, but weak in water, a monkey is strong on trees but weak on air. Just like an eagle is strong on air and weak on water and land. That’s why it always takes its prey to the sky where they have greater advantage to shine.

As human beings, we also must know what we are naturally good at, the ability to know this will enable us to maximize our strength and work on our weakness. We can only do this when we know ourselves and what we are naturally good at. Our ability to focus on our expertise and what we are naturally good at will make us unique and ahead of our contemporaries.

TENACITY

The eagles are known for their ability to withstand storms and use them to their advantage, rising above the challenges.  Watch an eagle when a storm comes. When other birds fly away from the storm with fear, an eagle spreads its mighty wings and uses the current to soar to greater heights. The eagle takes advantage of the very storm that lesser birds fear and head for cover.
Challenges in the life of a leader are many. These are the storms we must face as leaders to rise to greater heights. Like an eagle, a leader can only rise to greater heights if he takes up the challenges head on without running away from it. This is yet another leadership characteristic.

As humans, we all will experience challenges and setbacks, however, the ability to apply strength will go a long way to show how determined we are to overcome the hurdles that pose as challenges.

FEARLESS

An eagle will never surrender to the size or strength of its prey. It will always give a fight to win its prey or regain its territory.
Successful leaders are fearless, so we are expected to fear no man, but respect all men. They face problems head on. We are supposed to have the eagle fearless mindset regardless of how big the problem may appear. Confront your fear and rise or face your fear and run. The choice is yours.

VITALITY NATURE

One of the strongest characteristics of an eagle is their vitality. Eagles are full of life and are visionary, but they find time to look back at their life and re-energize themselves. This happens at about the age of 30. What happens is that when the eagles reach the age of 30, their physical body condition deteriorates fast making it difficult for them to survive.

What is interesting is that the eagle never gives up living, instead it retreats to a mountaintop and over a five-month period goes through a metamorphosis. As humans, we are expected to reexamine ourselves, retreat to a safe zone. We can do this by fasting as Christians, we can also do this by learning new skills, volunteering our time and seeking for mentors who can hold us by the hand to show us how the appearance of life is not the reality of life.

In conclusion, as human beings, we are encouraged to be like an eagle if we want to scale through life.

Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator.  He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design  and Unleash Your Destiny .  He can be reached via info@gloemi.com

The social responsibility vehicle of Globacom, Glo Foundation last week initiated the fulfilment of its pledge to the Management of the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) to empower workers of the agency as it commenced the first phase of its Skillbridge programme to train workers of the agency.

The goal of the program is to give LAWMA employees soft skills so they can bridge income gaps and have additional revenue streams.

The Glo Foundation recently announced plans for an empowerment and skills acquisition programme for the sweepers at a special day celebrating LAWMA workers and sweepers in Lagos. These consist of several vocational trainings, such as digital skills, baking, beadwork, and fashion design.

About 150 chosen sweepers are receiving instructions in fashion, bead making, baking, and digital skills at partner training centres across Lagos last week, marking the start of the program. Some program participants expressed gratitude for the opportunity that was made available to them.

In a statement issued in Lagos, the Glo Foundation said it was pleased with the trainees’ progress and commended them for their commitment to seizing the chance to learn new skills that would enable them to create additional sources of income.

Last week, the LAWMA trainees were observed learning the techniques in a friendly environment at the Fashion and Bead Making course, which was held at Yetroslane, Atunrase Estate, Gbagada, Lagos. By the third training day, most of those undergoing training in bead making were already wearing the beads they had created.

Amusat Mopelola Airat, one of the trainees for bead making, lauded Glo Foundation and her employers, LAWMA, for giving her the opportunity. The same sentiment was echoed by another trainee, Liadi Fatimoh.

Similarly, the atmosphere at the Bakery Initiatives, Yaba, Lagos location for the Baking training programme was very lively. Mrs Busari Adebanke Busayo, a supervisor, said she and other trainees were enjoying learning under friendly trainers and making rapid progress. “It will be of huge benefit to me and my family. I’ve learnt how to measure and weigh flour for various baking products and a lot of other things”.

Mr Williams Oladipupo, who is based in Ikorodu, commended Glo Foundation for putting in place the digital skills training at ALX, Costain, Lagos. He said this would boost his personal business and also help him in bringing up his children who were already learning coding.

Miss Udoh Blessing Endurance Francis, a 22-year-old sweeper who is also attending the digital skills training classes, appreciated Glo and its partners for putting in place the initiative. She noted that the world is going digital and only those who are prepared will be able to cope.

The four-week intensive training programme will end in July.